ARTICLES ABOUT AIRBUS AIRCRAFT BY DATE - PAGE 4

NEW DELHI: Besides the 43 aircraft being bought from Airbus for $2bn, public sector carrier Indian is leasing 16 aircraft to compete more aggressively in the booming aviation market. The ambitious leasing plan is progressing rapidly with the blessings of civil aviation minister Praful Patel who wants the airline to cash in on the boom. While the 43 Airbus aircraft will be delivered over a period of time, the dry lease route will help in faster expansion, civil aviation ministry sources said.

NEW DELHI: As a part of its fleet expansion plans, budget carrier Jagson Airlines on Wednesday launched two new Mi-172 helicopters. The airlines said it has already embarked on a fleet expansion programme under which it will acquire 19 Airbus aircraft over the next three years to launch flights between major metros. The new helicopters were acquired at a cost of Rs 50 crore and each has a capacity of 26 passengers, a statement by the airlines said.

NEW DELHI: Jagson Airlines Ltd said on Thursday it planned to sell 20 to 25 per cent of equity to domestic and foreign investors as it prepares to begin scheduled flights of its first Airbus aircraft. Company officials said stake sale talks with a foreign investor were at an advanced stage. "It would be to a foreign venture capital investor and a consortium of domestic investors," Uttam Kumar Bose, Jagson's president and CEO told the media in an interview. "About 51 per cent is currently held by the promoters.

NEW DELHI: Liquor baron Vijay Mallya's Kingfisher Airlines has appointed an advisory board, comprising top names in the global aviation business, to guide the carrier on various aspects, including aircraft acquisition. The board would initially comprise former Rolls Royce Chairman Sir Ralph Robins, former Chief Engineer of Royal Air Force Sir Colin Terry, former Cathay Pacific Engineering Director Stewart John, former Swiss International Airlines COO Karel H Ledeboer and former Cathay Pacific Chairman David Turnbull, a company release said.

MUMBAI: Close on the heels of a fresh order placed to acquire 30 Airbus aircraft, budget carrier Air Deccan is planning to acquire more turbo-prop aircraft from Avions de Transport Regional (ATR) soon to enhance its regional connectivity maintaining lower fare. The airline would go ahead with the purchase plan in the current year itself to tackle the issue of volatile crude prices, Air Deccan CMD G R Gopinath said. "We will be acquiring more ATR aircraft soon.

NEW DELHI: Jagson Airlines which has been operating 12-seater flights to Himachal, Jammu and Kashmir and Rajasthan, announced on Thursday acquisition of 19 airbus aircraft and the launch of its national operations by April. Announcing this, Jagson Airlines President and CEO, Uttam Kumar Bose, said "Six aircrafts would be leased to start up the flights with an initial investment of Rs 250 crore". "The airbus aircraft would be A-321s," he added. The first flight would be between Delhi and Banglore.

BANGALORE: Air India (A-I) is phasing out its oldest jumbo, Boeing 747-200, on grounds that the aircraft is a fuel guzzler and requires high cost of maintenance. Airline sources said the move is part of A-I's strategy to rationalise its fleet to three types of aircraft ? B747-400, B777 and B787 (Boeing Dreamliner). The fleet of eight A310s will also be grounded around '08-09 after the arrival of new Boeing aircraft worth $8bn. While A-I decided to decommission two B747-200s in '04, the phaseout is to take place this year.

BANGALORE: Air India (A-I) is phasing out its oldest jumbo, Boeing 747-200, on grounds that the aircraft is a fuel guzzler and requires high cost of maintenance. Airline sources said the move is part of A-I's strategy to rationalise its fleet to three types of aircraft ? B747-400, B777 and B787 (Boeing Dreamliner). The fleet of eight A310s will also be grounded around '08-09 after the arrival of new Boeing aircraft worth $8bn. While A-I decided to decommission two B747-200s in '04, the phaseout is to take place this year.

NEW DELHI: Indian Airlines and Air India are expected to offer up to 20per cent of their shares through an initial public offering to raise resources for their expansion plans. This would see a dilution of the government holding in the two companies. Shares of the two carriers are expected to be offered in the capital market in the first quarter of the next calendar year. Employees of the two carriers may also be offered shares under an employee stock option plan. The extent of dilution would depend on the financial needs of the two carriers.

NEW DELHI: Indian Airlines (IA) has floated tenders to lease 12 wide-bodied aircraft to launch new foreign operations, while its subsidiary Alliance Air would lease two Business Jets for operations of oil major ONGC. The IA tenders, to be opened on November 21, expresses the carrier's interest in leasing 12 aircraft - either A-310-300s, A-330, A-340 or Boeing-767 (Extended Range) and B-777s - for a period of five years, extendable up to seven. This is the second time this year that IA has floated the tenders for wide-bodied aircraft as the previous tenders did not receive any firm response.